Every lawyer has to start his or her career somewhere. And in the backstory of most successful attorneys, there are professors, judges, bosses and colleagues who helped them along.

In this episode of Legal Speak, more than a dozen leaders in Big Law, small law, courts, corporate legal departments and academia talk about the people who shaped their careers and the lessons they learned.

You'll hear about the advice that serves as a guidepost for Uber GC Tony West, the career curves that landed Noreen Krall her current job at Apple Inc., and the partner who gave star litigator Bill Lee his first assignment.

At 28:51, you can hear Senior Judge Frank Hull of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit teach about Judge Elbert Tuttle; his leadership on the Fifth Circuit helped enforce desegregation rulings throughout the South.

Plus, Latham & Watkins partner Leslie Caldwell recalls what she learned from Special Counsel Robert Mueller III, Orrick's Joshua Rosenkranz talks about the figure who guided him through a pivotal career decision, and 3M GC Ivan Fong shares his advice for building a portfolio of career mentors.

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Legal Speak is brought to you by Econ One, offering economic expertise, consulting and dispute resolution, and data analytics.